NOTEBOOK: Frosh Bounce Back in Defeat

Last Wednesday, Harvard started its Beanpot series against Boston University. The team came out flat, losing by 16 to the superior Terriers, 75-59.

And no one struggled more than the freshmen—especially guard Max Kenyi and power forward Keith Wright.

Kenyi’s line ended 0-3, three fouls, and one turnover, and Wright coughed it up more than he scored, tallying a disappointing seven giveaways along with only six points.

Last night, in another big game against a Boston rival, the freshmen came to play. Although the team fell 76-71 to Northeastern in a double overtime thriller, this is a sign of maturity the Crimson can build on.

Rookie swing forward Peter Boehm had six points, including two late threes. One brought the squad to within a point with 1:42 to play in the second and decisive overtime.

Wright battled in the post all game, playing solid defense while notching 11 points. And Kenyi maybe played the biggest of them all, forcing four steals, scoring 10 points in 41 crucial minutes. The catch: all the while, he was forced to guard the Huskies’ best player, Matt Janning, who shot just 6-16.

“He had to shadow Janning all night, [but] he had a lot of help form his teammates,” coach Tommy Amaker said. “It was a great effort and job by Max to battle him for 41 minutes.”

But it really was an all-around effort for Harvard’s rookies, and the squad will need more of that as the Ivy season quickly approaches.

“They’ve done a really good job, grown up fast, and are showing a lot of poise,” Amaker said. “Max was strong defensively and explosive, Peter [was strong] on the offensive end, and Keith being our best post scorer, I think they’ve been great for us.”

FANTASTIC FIVE

Harvard got more than it bargained for out of the Huskies last night at Lavietes. It took not one, but two overtimes to decide this Boston bash.

The Crimson also got more than it expected out of five standout players. Junior Jeremy Lin, senior Drew Housman, and the triumvirate of star freshmen—Boehm, Wright, and Kenyi—played every nail-biting minute of overtime.

Over the course of the final 20 minutes of the game, Amaker made two substitutions. Junior Doug Miller stepped into the lineup at the end of regulation to stuff Northeastern’s game-winning attempt, and freshman Oliver McNally came in with seconds left in the second overtime.

With the exception of a few seconds, the five standouts battled through fatigue and injuries and fouls to give the Crimson a shot.

Although it came up short, the team is ready to build upon its effort.

“Even though we didn’t pull it off today, it’s definitely something good for later on down the road,” Lin said.

TO DUNK OR NOT TO DUNK

Harvard was down nine, 50-41, with 10 minutes left in regulation and Northeastern looked to be pulling away. Then, Amaker went to his final five and things started to gel.

“On offense we were really trusting each other, moving the ball around,” Housman said.

But the team still needed a spark, and it looked to Lin to provide it. With nine minutes to play, Lin took the ball, faked left, drove right, and beat the whole Huskies team to the hoop, throwing down a tomahawk jam that brought Lavietes to its feet.

From that point on, the Crimson finished the game on a 21-12 run to tie it and send the contest to overtime.

But not before Northeastern’s Janning had an opportunity to respond.

Leading by five with a little more than three minutes left in the game, Janning had a chance to put a dagger in the Crimson. He drove through a wide-open lane and rose up to slam it through, but his dunk attempt clanged off the rim.

The Crimson’s comeback was still alive and well, while Janning’s ego remained most definitely bruised.

—Staff writer Walter E. Howell can be reached at wehowell@fas.harvard.edu.